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A-C/D-C is releasing a limited-edition version of their 1980 album, Back in Black, their first with singer Brian Johnson. Contained in a tin box, it will come with the re-mastered 2003 version of the album and a Back in Black T-shirt. Look for it in stores on August 11th.

Last year, Jack Bruce of Cream told reporters at a London awards ceremony that Led Zeppelin was “lame,” adding that they are “crap and [will] never be anything else. Cream is 10 times the band Led Zeppelin is.” He then said he was “just having some fun with the press gallery.” But apparently a few people took his remarks to heart as he reveals in an interview with the East Anglian Daily Times. He says, “Some Led Zeppelin fans were really angry at me and I had a few death threats. People like me tend to forget that with YouTube and Twitter you can’t say anything without it getting around the world. We always used to have a pop at other bands in the old days and that was all it was. It was like I had spoken out against the Queen or something. You obviously can’t say anything against Led Zeppelin.”  On the other hand, Bruce later reflected on his feelings in a practical context:

Jack Bruce is on tour with guitarist Robin Trower and drummer Gary Husband in support of Seven Moons, the album he recorded with Trower last year. They have a show in Norway tomorrow.

Bruce Springsteen will perform his Born to Run album in its entirety when he plays at Chicago’s United Center on September 20th, according to Rolling Stone. His spokeswoman was unavailable for comment, so we can’t say whether he plans to do an album at each show on his tour, which starts August 19th in Hartford, Connecticut. Last year, Springsteen played Born to Run and Darkness on the Edge of Town back-to-back at a fundraiser in Red Bank, New Jersey.

Springsteen trotted out two more tour premieres Sunday night in Bilbao, Spain — “Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street” and Chuck Berry‘s “You Never Can Tell.” Springsteen and the E Street Band are in Benidorm, Spain tomorrow night.

What a show!  Granted it’s been over a week since this legendary quintet from St. Albans performed at the Casinos of Winnipeg, but it’s only now that I’ve actually sat down to share my appreciation for that performance! 

There’s always a certain irony for a band who’s cache at the height of their career (some 40 years ago) was limited at best.  Yet, here they are in the new millenium sounding better than ever; their 1968 milestone “Odyssey and Oracle” recently won the Mojo Magazine Classic Album Award for 2009 in their native England – an album cited by fans and critics alike as one of the Top 3 most important Pop Music Albums in History after the Beatles “Sgt.Pepper’s” and “Pet Sounds” from the Beach Boys.  Perhaps the most sincere validation for this band is the fact that they continue to sell out their shows absolutely everywhere!  This most recent visit was the band’s 4th Winnipeg appearance in the last 5 years (5 if you include their first visit here in April 1965 at the old Winnipeg Auditorium).  For those who remember strictly the songs and not the faces, be reminded that the Zombies are one of the few active bands of the era who’s membership still retains the essential “heart and soul” of the original group.  To draw the proper analogy, keyboardist Rod Argent and singer Colin Blunstone are the groups’ “Lennon-McCartney ” if you will, and are the sole remaining original members.  Sir Roderick is such a gifted tunesmith; intricately simple yet complicated keyboard strokes define Mr. Argent as a true original.  Colin’s vocal range is still amazingly versatile.  Most singers in the 60s have long since dropped an octave or two, yet, remarkably Mr. Blunstone can still replicate some of the group’s most poignant numbers – particularly of the “Odyssey” period.  As one reviewer remarked, the Zombies were never “band wagon jumpers”, but defined all that was avante guarde of that first wave of the British Invasion.  As good as the Beatles were, there are many who feel the Zombies were irrefutably more complex both melodically and harmonically.  What’s nice is the band will soon be recording some new music, which most certainly means the likelihood of a return visit.  Given their record for consequetive sell-outs, one should set aside the price of admission to guarantee themselves a ticket for next time!

P.S.  The new sound system at the Regent Avenue Casino is absolutely amazing!!

Once again an attempt will be made to break the Guinness World Record for the largest guitar ensemble. The promoter of West Fest, the free San Francisco concert on October 25th celebrating the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, is asking three-thousand guitar players to simultaneously play Jimi Hendrix‘s “Purple Haze.” The current record was set last year when just over two-thousand guitarists came together in Concord, California to play Woody Guthrie‘s “This Land Is Your Land.” In 2007, 18-hundred people played Deep Purple‘s “Smoke on the Water” in Germany. If you’re interested in joining in the Hendrix jam, you can learn more at SteveRoby.com.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced the details of its 25th anniversary celebration at a press conference yesterday at the Hall‘s Annex in New York. Two four-hour shows, dubbed the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Concerts, will be held at New York’s Madison Square Garden on October 29th and 30th. Taking the stage on the 29th will be Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Paul Simon solo and then with Art Garfunkel, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Friends and Stevie Wonder. The lineup on the 30th will include Eric Clapton, Aretha Franklin, Metallica and U-2. Both nights will also feature surprise guests, and more acts are expected to be announced.

Jann Wenner, founder and chairman of Rolling Stone and the chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, tells us they were “looking for balance” in choosing the acts and “trying to represent a sweep of history.” The shows will be filmed for an H-B-O special that will air a few weeks later.

All proceeds raised will go toward creating a permanent endowment for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. American Express card holders get first crack at tickets on Monday at 9:00 a-m [ET] through Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. Tickets to the general public will go on sale August 3rd at 9:00 a-m [ET].

Next month, the Hall, through Time-Life, will release a nine-D-V-D box set of highlights from the induction ceremonies. This will be followed in September by a book and D-V-D set, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The First 25 Years.